PUBLICATIONS, BROADCASTING AND FILMS
271
A teleprinter network, installed in 1960 to enable news to be transmitted immediately and simultaneously to major press and broadcasting outlets, continues to expand and now serves 18 subscribers. Its value has been demonstrated over and over again. On the night of the tragic Un Chau Street fire, messages containing the latest information on the situation and the number of casualties were transmitted continuously. The network also proved its value, in happier circumstances, at the drawings of the Government lotteries. A large number of pressmen attended the first drawing, but practically none came to the second. They had discovered that the winning numbers, flashed to the Government Information Services by teleprinter from the City Hall and immediately relayed to the newspapers, reached their offices more quickly and more accurately than they could telephone. During disastrous typhoon Wanda in September, the network transmitted weather and damage reports non-stop round-the-clock, presenting a much more concise and comprehensive picture of the situation than could have been given by any other means.
A service designed especially for the Chinese press was intro- duced during the year. This consists of feature articles about Government activities written in Chinese by Chinese assistant information officers; previously features were written in English and translated. The new service, which has covered such diverse subjects as the Lion Rock Tunnel, the Tenancy Tribunal and the police, has proved very popular, many Chinese newspapers giving a full-page spread to the articles.
The publicity division has both local and overseas commitments. In Hong Kong it is responsible for handling publicity campaigns for all Government departments and for the production of films, books, booklets, posters, leaflets and other visual aids designed to promote better understanding between the public and Government. For overseas distribution the division concentrates largely upon the production of newsreels, magazine and newspaper feature articles and photo-features.
The short film has proved an invaluable medium for reaching large sections of Hong Kong's population and an excellent vehicle for projecting Hong Kong overseas. Six one-minute colour 'filmlets' made by the department's film unit were joint winners of the Royal Society of Arts Commonwealth Film Award for 1962. The